Building Strong Immunity for Wellness and Health - Tips for Fall and Early Winter:

How many times have you heard someone proudly say “I never get sick. I’m STRONG like a bull!” Fact is that getting a cold or flu during the changing seasons is what is supposed to happen. This how our body builds immunity and learns to fight intruders such as bacteria, viruses and parasites. Acupuncture regulates and boosts immune function. A boosted immune system can help fight off pathogens.

On the other side of the coin, there are people who sadly are always sick. The cold that will not leave, the phlegm or congestion that lingers for months or the chronic sinus infection. Despite the round-the-clock dosing of antibiotics, fever reducing medicines and antihistamines, the body refuses to let go of the “bug” that is hanging on. Acupuncture regulates immune function while speeding up the healing of infection and normalizing the body’s immune response.

We have a few helpful tips to start right now, to strengthen your immune system as we enter the colder months:

• Keep your neck covered: Pathogens enter at the neck! Your scarf is not only fashionable, it protects your neck and chest from cold, damp and wind that attacks us at certain times of the year. Cover up and protect yourself.
• Stay away from ice water and cold (raw) foods: Stick to room temperature water to hydrate throughout the day. Ice (cold) slows the healing process and restricts the body and systems. Ice will slow the healing process of a wound. Herbal teas and bone broth is a soothing support for the body.
• Let a fever run its course: When we get sick, we are supposed to get a fever! This is how the human body fights! When the body is under attack, (virus or bacteria) our body will spike a fever. The fever is the body’s “army and defender” by heating up to kill the pathogen. If you get sick and have a fever, cover up and make yourself sweat! By being hasty with fever-reducing meds, the body will push the illness deeper. The deep dark caverns… that is where latent pathogens live until we get overworked, stressed, rundown and can not keep them in check so they begin to express themselves again in various ways when we are weakened.
• Get enough rest: During the day, the stress hormone cortisol is at high levels in the body, suppressing your immune function. At night, cortisol levels drop, triggering cellular repair processes that are critical to optimal immunity. Our bodies work to cleanse and detox between 1:00 and 3:00 am.

Boost your immunity and support your body with acupuncture and integrative medicine. Call (847) 701-5788 to make an appointment for a consult about how to stay healthy all year and to keep your body fighting strong!